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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29226444">Kate on the mend, Anthony annoyed</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ayeka3b/pseuds/ayeka3b'>ayeka3b</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Bridgerton (TV), Bridgerton Series - Julia Quinn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 08:21:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,837</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29226444</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ayeka3b/pseuds/ayeka3b</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Anthony's family is here to help Kate in mending her broken leg, but they are driving Anthony a little mad.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Anthony Bridgerton/Kate Sheffield</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>146</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The time it was taking Kate’s leg to mend was taking its toll on Anthony.<br/>It wasn’t that he had to be oh so careful when he touched her, and that their bedroom options were extremely limited. He was actually anticipating the time he could once again pursue more full relations in a way he was not used to, having always had almost instant relief in the past.<br/>It wasn’t that he had to help dress Kate because of the splint in place that her lady’s maid couldn’t manage. He enjoyed helping Kate in and out of her clothes and had encouraged her to sleep without her night dress as often as possible (with limited success).<br/>And it certainly wasn’t having to carry her everywhere ever so gently. It gave him a rather nice ability to hold her close.<br/>No, the toll came straight from the group that it had for most of his life, the Bridgertons. His family had made it their personal mission to keep Kate occupied and entertained, and, given her current condition, he seem to find all of them at his house all the time.</p><p>Right from the morning when he would help Kate into a simple chemise with a dressing gown over and would carry her down to the drawing room to be met with a bevy their female relatives(and Penelope Featherington, who had become a close friend of Kate’s), with the seeming aim to turn their drawing room into Bridgerton house itself with all the yells and squawks that came with it will the evenings when he had to practically force people out in order to get some time alone with his wife.<br/>Her first day there, Daphne ordered a pianoforte to be brought in so she and Francesca could entertain Kate without even consulting Anthony.<br/>Gregory and Hyacinth burst forth into the drawing room and emptied a might satchel of dolls and soldiers on the floor, having promised that they were bringing their lessons with in order to come. Newton took a particular interest, and, when it became clear he had two willing participants for pets, the pudgy dog flopped down and rolled over to have his belly rubbed. Soon the siblings were fighting over who would get to walk him, causing many a footman to suffer in their wake.<br/>Their first day there, he found Eloise in the upstairs rooms, opening door after door before slamming them once again.<br/>“What on earth are you doing?” he demanded.<br/>“Don’t you have an Italian furniture in this place?”<br/>“What?’<br/>Eloise shot him a scathing look, “Daphne needs a much more comfortable place to lay than that sad excuse of a couch you have downstairs.’” And said that the must go out an purchase one immediately and set off with Penelope only to return with a chaise lounge in tow(and a bill for him).</p><p>He tried to enforce order and discipline, laying out the times and days that the visitors may come, but he was roundly ignored by the women of his family who were only too happy to bring along the women his bride’s family as well with calls of “don’t mind him” as they pushed past.</p><p>His attempt to outright ban the male Bridgertons went just as well.<br/>Gregory he tolerated as he was still a boy, but as Kate was in her dressing gown, Benedict and Colin were simply not allowed.<br/>“We see Daph and Eloise in their dressings gowns, this is no different”, and they brushed past him.<br/>It soon became clear that Benedict and Colin considered her another sister and loved nothing more than to regale her with tales of Antony’s mischief.<br/>“And then, Lord Highbury knocked him flat out.”<br/>Simon was even worse. He simply would not leave Daphne’s side and when Antony told the Duke that he could not be allowed to see Kate in her state, Simon clamped both his hand on Antony’s shoulders, looked him the eye and said, “It’s good to love one’s wife, is it not”, before proceeding into the room.</p><p>He would have put a stop to it, but Kate seemed to enjoy it (as did frequent visitor Edwina). She confessed that, while she loved her sister, having a large, boisterous group about was quite novel and made convalescence all the better.<br/>And, despite his best efforts, he also could not spend all day at home, much though he would like. He did have business to attend to and prided himself on his time in the Lords, so he appreciated having people he trusted to watch over her.<br/>So when his mother discretely asked if they were getting under foot, he conveyed quite the opposite.</p><p>He did not realize what he had opened with that.</p><p>Eloise burst in the next day and ran up the stairs with such excitement that Anthony did not know what to think.<br/>She plopped down on the chair next to Kate and embraced her sister-in-law, breathlessly telling her that Violet had allowed Eloise out of every society function for the next two months so Kate could always be guaranteed company and that was the most amazing present anyone could ever have given to her.<br/>The next day she brought a portable writing desk along with copious correspondence that she could read to Kate and Penelope Featherigton as well.</p><p>After there refusal to bring lessons with, Hyacinth and Gregory had managed to play on their mother’s sympathy by stating that someone had to walk Newton as Kate was unable to do so, and arrived, without fail, shortly before tea time daily to pocket half a dozen macaroons(that the cook had discovered were their favorite) and fight over who got to hold Newton’s lease on walks before taking off in a flurry, sometimes with Colin, Benedict or Simon in tow, and always with a harried footman.</p><p>They would tarry so long at the house that, eventually, their governess was brought along to be installed in the library when they begged to continue to come along with Newton as their study companion. The governess was forced to attempt to banish Newton more than once when he caused an interruption in their school work, but he would hang his head and turn to slink away in the saddest manner, as if he were personally responsible for their inability to memorize times tables or French verbs, that the governess always relented and allowed him back.</p><p>Anthony was at his wit's end.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Then, Mr. Bagwell came bearing flowers and chocolates for Kate. Kate! The impertinence, that was his wife, he would simply not allow other men to bring such tokens for her.</p><p> Unfortunately, his brothers saw how much it irked him and so began an arms race to bring bigger and bigger bouquets and more elaborate candy displays just to prove that they too could bring to his wife. </p><p>   By day 2, the bouquets were the size of Newton. Day 4 saw the biggest monstrosity of chocolate box that Anthony thought it would never be consumed (he had forgotten Colin’s hollow leg and Daphne’s current state of pregnancy). At day 7, the bouquets were now close to the size of Hyacinth and Kate begged for relief from the sheer onslaught(Kate would say that the bouquets were nowhere near that size and she was perfectly happy receiving them but Anthony would not hear of it).</p><p>   The Bridgerton girls refused to take any(Simon kept Daphne supplied with endless roses, but all <br/>proclaimed that they would not have flowers from their brothers as there must be sabotage involved somehow), but Kate ensured that his mother and Mary took home a previous day’s bouquet(and admonished the Bridgerton boys for not taking flowers to their mother).</p><p>   She pressed Colin’s day 7 bouquet onto Penelope(causing her to blush furiously), and Benedicts’ onto a ladies maid that had accompanied her mother(Sophie was her name perhaps?), causing Benedict to blush and offer to escort his mother home. Before he had time to process these odd doings, Kate had asked him for some task.</p><p>   Besides, Kate didn’t need flowers. Anthony ensured she always had some on hand and toke pleasure in the fact that no man (well no man that actually matter as far as his brothers were concerned) had ever delivered some to her.</p><p>   In truth, it surprised him that no one had noticed her true beauty until him, but he thanked God above that he was able to ensure she was his before anyone else did. Of course, he kept a close eye on every man at the balls and parties they attended to look for anyone with a roving eye.</p><p>   But now, Bagwell had broken this streak and Anthony did not like it all. Not one bit.</p><p>   Anthony thought he simply could not forgive Mr. Bagwell, and he still might not, but he didn’t quite hate him as much as he did on that terrible day when he thought he lost the love of his life.</p><p>  A small crack in the axel was discovered. Additionally, it was discovered that Sir Morris had nearby been trying to impress a certain lady with his horse riding skills, but had badly misjudged his own abilities causing Bagwell’s horses to spoke.</p><p>   And Edwina seemed to be in love with Bagwell, and he did feel a brotherly affection toward Edwina and wanted to ensure her health and happiness, so it was hard to fully hate him, though he certainly maintained his concern and Anthony would allow no one in a vehicle piloted by the man and had a tendency to do nothing but glare in his direction when Mr. Bagwell milled in the front hall. </p><p>Simon has taken to driving the couple in the park. Anthony agreed because he knew Simon was steady with any vehicle, and would do everything to ensure his pregnant sister safety’s(to Daphne’s unending annoyance).</p><p>Even then, it was only at Kate’s insistence that he allowed it.</p><p>Colin began applying to Kate for all manner of things(increased allowance, a turret to be added to Bridgerton house, and a race track for Aubrey hall) on the grounds that if anyone could convince Anthony, it was Kate as it seemed as though she could be denied nothing by her husband.</p><p>Anthony grumbled and denied this as being ridiculous.</p><p>It was, of course, entirely true, and Colin may have gotten his increased cash, the turret as well, and a racing stable as well had Kate pushed the issue, but, while his wife seemed content to test him at every avenue, she also seemed to not want to push him.</p><p>He choose to ignore the fact that Eloise did get some extra pin money, Hyacinth a new doll, Gregory time off from his tutor, and Francesca a new dress. Even Benedict was given the choice of paintings that the Bridgertons would lend to the new Royal exhibition(“something that should have happened years ago,” Kate intoned).</p><p>Colin was told to stuff it.</p>
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